Home Forums Gear Hunting Trucks and Four-Wheel Drives Sea Foam fuel additive......

Yes, I buy it by the gallon. All the small engines get it even though I burn non-oxygenated gas.
A WWII creation by two mechanics attempting keep the Air Force flying in Alaska.
On a hot date, a little behind the ears works wonders too.......or so I'm told.

Thanks. I just bought a quart of Stabil Marine that I'll start using with my next fill-ups. I'll start my TCW-3 research now. I forgot to mention that I've also been using Lucas UCL in my larger vehicles that burn 10% corn. I've used it strictly as a protective measure, but have never taken the time to evaluate it for possible mileage gains like so many users claim.

A check engine light just popped on my 04' Dodge Ram 1500 4x4. I had the light checked and the mechanic said it was a "carb sensor." My truck has the Hemi, I don't drive it daily it only has 66,000 miles. Mechanic wants $250 to fix the carb sensor, someone else told me to add some of this stuff in my gas and it would probably take care of it. I'm not a engine guy, advice appreciated by the more knowledgable.

I'm not a mechanic either, but have had a few check engine lights come on over the years. I'd get second opinion before forking over $250 for a sensor replacement. I've had mechanics check the code, then clear the warning light and wait to see if the light comes back a second time. Often it doesn't, and is the result of a single incident that wasn't a huge deal. I also doubt the sensor costs more than $150, or there's even a full hour of shop time replacing it.

I've had my '08 Ram 2500 light come on twice in the last five years for a loose gas cap (or so the code said), but recently forgot to put the cap on, and left it swinging in the breeze for about 40 miles and it never tripped off a warning light. Go figure.

About six months ago the check light came on in our run-around hoopty, and before I got around to plugging in the OBDII to read the code, a week or so went by and the light went off on its own.

Come to think of it, the only sensor I've ever had replaced was in my Tacoma, at about 50K when the TPS started acting up. It really worried me because I got freeway speed hiccups and the computer couldn't capture the code the first time. When it finally did, it was a simple sensor replacement, and I was glad to buy a new one.

Again I'm not a mechanic, but I've learned to be distrustful enough to ask for second opinions. And to answer your question about Seafoam, it shouldn't make the problem worse, might make it better, or might correct itself with a fresh tank of fuel.

You guys want to see a product that will get you better mileage GUARANTEED? Download the app "Pure Gas" and find a gas station that has ethanol free gas. Your vehicle will run better and you will get better mileage.

I try to run a tank every 3000 miles or so.

BG44K will also work wonders. On an 04 with that low mileage I would absolutely run a can through the tank. It works best when you drive for a bit and then shut it down and it takes a week or two to go through the tank of gas. This allows it to do work

I'm going to try it, appreciate the replys.

I bet a like amount of acetone would net the same results as seafoam. The top end cleaning action could be done with even cold water.....you are adding a cold liquid to hot carbon in an effort to break it up.

After cleaning/rebuilding a lot of carburetors the #1 culprit I find is something that made it past the filter or dried up gas that rehydrates with a deposit. 99% of the time draining the bowl and a quick shot of carb cleaner or acetone will blast out enough particles to get back on the road.

If a fuel additive in the amount of 8oz per 128 gallons was enough to show remarkable engine improvement, the epa would have mandated it long ago as all of the ingredients are available at the refinery.

Adding 10-15% Ethanol decreases the mileage yield of gasoline, and yet here we are. I've never felt the EPA had my health, household budget, or the environment in mind while making their proclamations. While snake oil has been around a long time in various forms, I believe some products do work as claimed.

I don’t know about your 1:2000 (or so) ratio, but I know that 1:125 and even 1:250 ratios of additives can be useful. Alcohol certainly can improve the performance of a vehicle that has water in the fuel at the rate of 1 ounce per gallon or so. But does that mean it should be mandated therefore in all gasoline? (It does in fact attract water vapor which can also be a bad thing.)

Specific additives can be a good thing for specific circumstances. I would hate for EPA to mandate them when they are in fact often not helpful at all and even detrimental.

Some alcohols can mix up to 20% or so with water for sure, but for the 99% of folks that don't get their fuel barged in, water in fuel is pretty low concern. My point was that seafoam is no magic bullet that can't be substituted with a variety of other suitable chemicals......or simple maintenance. I personally would rather clean the bowl on my lawn mower than dump seafoam in it, and it takes 10 minutes to go completely through the average Walbro carbs on your saw or weed wacker. What is found 99.9999999% of the time is debris or solids from dried fuel.

Very simple fix.

To think that a can of medicine can replace a valve grind is laughable.

Lots of additives hold a certain ‘snake oil’ appeal to some folks I suppose. I don’t think that is the gist of this thread however.

Where small engines are concerned, I’ve certainly seen more harm done by tinkering with carbs when proper use and very simple maintenance (like good filters and water displacer additives) will prevent 99% of the problems. (Water creates ‘solids’ in aluminum and zinc carb bowls when it sits in there and causes corrosion by-products for example.)


Suggesting that water in fuel is not much of a concern however unless it is barged denies the reality that cold weather brings to the picture. The water that gets in fuel, even the stuff which is barged in, is largely atmospheric in origin as it sits in storage. The same is true of many vehicle-mounted fuel tanks. Most people have no idea what’s actually in their tank and even fewer drain and clean them. Some of that stuff that accumulates in the tank will eventually find it’s way beyond the filters and into the carbs or injectors. Some fuel additives can be useful periodically for cleaning out the stuff that can cause rough idling. SeaFoam seems to work quite well in this regard. It might not be better than a 10 minute carb job on a simple lawn or garden implement, but it sure beats spending a couple of hours tearing into machinery that is still in need of chemicals of one sort or another for proper cleaning, or could have been avoided in the first place by the use of a proper additive.

Obviously nothing you add to the fuel or oil will repair worn rings or cylinders, or repair leaky valves.

Its all snake oil! You can sell folks anything with the right slogans and advertisements.

Customers with the ford 5.4 that are getting cam phaser noise have been adding half a bottle to the oil. Have not had an issue since.

When my log splitter started running [bleep] my buddy who was also a small engine guy told me to purchase 91 octane or higher and toss in some seafoam. That was years ago and haven't had a problem since. The small engines seem to dislike the ethanol crap over time.

Been using it for several years, works

I service 10-12 chainsaws, cutoff saws, and vent fans every week at the fire dept. and Seafoam has been a mainstay to keep them running. Usually I can get them running again with liberal doses of Seafoam spray or Seafoam Deep Creep in the carb if I don't have time to take the carb apart. I was at a certification class from one of the power equipment manufacturers a couple of years ago and the engineer who headed up the repair dept. swears by it and gave me a case to try out. I'm normally leery of most additives but the Seafoam has proven itself so far.

Sea Foam it is........thx for the replies/info......

Walmart has it for $7 a can or so...

Have been using Sta-Bil for all small engines & seasonal storage

I use it in all my small engine stuff. That, and no ethanol gas seems to keep things running smooth

If memory serves me, Seafoam is mostly tolulene, with diesel, and white gas.

It can work great as a carbon blaster when drowning out a warm motor and letting it set for thirty minutes to overnight ( it will kill lots of mosquitoes when restarted ). If you want to run it though a tank of fuel, add it when the tank is a quarter low or less and drive it a few miles before filling up the rest of the tank.

Won't hurt anything, usually helps.

As to the check engine lights, sensors, etc. If the light is on, chances are you are not getting as good of fuel mileage as you could, especially O2 sensors.